Magenta eyes slowly blinked open as the young teenager they belonged to let out a low groan.

"You're awake?" A blurry figure rushed over. The teen tried to pull himself up but was stopped by a hand against his chest. "Easy, easy. Don't try to move." The eyelids slid shut once more. "Someone call the healing head!"

The next time his eyes opened they were greeted by a bright light blinding them. "Pupil dilation looks good," he heard muttered. "Can you hear me?" was said in a louder voice.

"…Yeah…" was the raspy response.

"Good, that's good." The light removed itself from his eyes.

"…Where am I?"

"The castle's healing ward. You had us worried for a while there."

"…What happened?"

"That's… a long story."

Footsteps were heard from out of view. "Leave us," a new voice commanded.

"But… Understood, sire."

As the man with the light left, the teen's eyes followed him until they settled on a tall figure. This tall figure walked up the bed of the teen, and sat down on a chair which moved itself into position below him. "I'm… glad to see you're awake." He said in a kindly voice. He removed the antlered mask he wore, revealing a full head of ash-blond hair. His most striking feature, however, was the large green scar across his face. "I was almost afraid you may never wake up."

"What happened?" the teen repeated.

"We'll get to that. First, do you know who you are?"

"I'm… the Golden Guard?" The teen sounded unsure.

The man nodded "Yes, you are… But do you remember your name?"

"It's… Hunter?" the teen said, with a pause much longer than normal for such a simple question.

A smile grew on the man's face. "Good, that's good… Do you know who I am?"

"You're my Uncle Belos." Hunter said, much more confident in his answer.

"Yes, that's right…" Belos visibly relaxed. "I'm glad to see you know that much, at least."

"Uncle, what happened?" Hunter tried to pull himself up but Belos gently pushed him back down. "Why and I in the healing ward?"

Belos was silent for a moment. "…What's the last thing you remember?"

"I…" Hunter thought back. "You sent me on a mission. There was a reported gathering of wild witches, and… you sent me to bring them in."

There was a large sigh of disappointment. "I was afraid of that."

Hunter looked over to him. "Afraid of what?"

Belos couldn't meet his eyes. "There's no easy way to say this… You are correct, I did a send you on a mission, but Hunter… that was almost six months ago."

"WHAT?" Hunter shot up "S-six months?"

Belos frowned. "It gets worse. We thought you were dead when you never returned, but when my scouts found you, you were… no, I shouldn't say."

"I was what?"

Belos shook his head. "No, you don't want to hear this."

"Uncle, please!" Hunter begged. "I need to know what happened!"

". . ." Belos couldn't meet his eyes. "When my scouts came across you, your-" Belos inhaled sharply. "Your first instinct was to attack them."

Hunter's eyes widened. "…What?"

"Not only that, but… you were singing the praises of wild magic."

"NO!" Hunter cried. "No, that's not possible, I-I would never-"

Belos held up a hand. "I know you would never do such a thing… Not willingly, at any rate."

"What do you mean?"

Belos leaned back. "When the wild witches captured you, they… did something to you. Something to your mind. Your thoughts, your personality… It wouldn't be inaccurate to say they made you an entirely different person." Belos frowned. "You don't… remember any of this?"

"…I…" Hunter though, he really did. But everything was just a blur. Hunter fell back, exhausted. "No. No, I don't."

Belos nodded. "Unfortunately, that was the most likely outcome. It was by the grace of the Titan that I was able to restore your mind to this point, but…" He sighed. "The damage had already been done. Many of your memories are just… gone I'm afraid."

Hunter was silent. As much as he hated to admit it, there were only a few things he could remember with clarity. Uncle finding him after the death of his family, receiving his first staff, among a few others. But everything else was just… gone. "What about the ones who did this? Are they still at large?"

Belos was silent. "You don't need to worry, they've been… dealt with." He shook his head. "The Titan can forgive many things, but what they did to you… violating your mind… that is not one of them…

"But that's not important," Belos said, waving his hand. "What is important is that I finally have my nephew back." He pulled a golden mask out of his robe. "And that the Isles have their Guard back." He extended the mask out. "You won't be able to go on any missions yet, of course. After all, you have several months worth of training will need to catch up on."

Hunter frowned, disappointed but understanding the reasoning. "Yes, Uncle." He grabbed the offered mask.

"But that can wait!" Belos declared, standing up. "In the meantime, we must tell the public of your return!"

Hunter stared at his reflection in the polished gold mask, magenta eyes and unblemished face staring back. "As you command, your Highness."

AN: Bit of a shorter one this time, but this just felt like the perfect place to stop. Pretty much all these chapters are going to be on the shorter side, so I'm hoping to get them out fast.